Jenson Button

Arguably the best ever driver in mixed conditions, all his wins at Mclaren have come in those conditions. His last race win in the dry came at the 2009 Turkish GP.

Button is known for his smooth driving style and is normally seen in must races doing one less stop than his rivals for tyres.

Buttons also know to be a bit of a practical joker and will take part in anything fun.

Since his debut in 2000 Button has won the majority of hearts in this country. But what is your favourite JB win?

Mine has to be Hungaroring 2006, in argubly a midfield team and he won the race in those mixed conditions to take his first win. I can remember James Allen been in tears almost and that was the first race Anthony Davidson ever commentated on.

 

[jez101]

Uh? What did I say...

The apparent contradiction I raised wasn't a criticism, just something I don't understand about why "Jenson's style" works when it does and doesn't work when it doesn't work.

 

[Bill Boddy]

One thing about Button is that he is known for his "smooth" style. It is also believed by some that he is not as good on courses where there are a lot of kerbs which have to be attacked hard where this "smoothness" is a disadvantage. I'm not sure though that if someone were to analyse his races this theory would hold up.

It would be interesting if someone were to carry out such an exercise (hint, hint).

 

[The Pits]

Bill Boddy an unscientific review of Abu Dhabi and Singapore along with Monza this year I think wound show something, coupled with Buttons love of Australia and Japan, along with his win in Belgium.

I think that the moist driving is a result of style and sensitivity. In normal dry conditions, drivers such as Hamilton, Vettel and Alonso are quick as their natural sensitivity to the car allows them to correct the steering and direct the car through the rear almost instinctively, where JB is not quite on the same level.

In the wet, these same instincts are less useful than not causing the car to break away in the first place, so the smooth actions will create less loss of traction and keep the car more on the line.

All marginal, of course, but does that seem feasible?

 

[Brogan]

They say rain is the great equaliser as cars can't be driven on the limit.

Perhaps that's it?

 

[Fenderman]

This has has been an interesting discussion as regards JB's driving style in mixed, wet and dry conditions. Jenson's smooth driving style and in particular his gentle and precise input into steering the car are qualities that have been recognised and remarked upon by followers, commentators and pundits alike, going way back to his time driving karts. There can surely be no argument there. Those qualities are perfect tools in the kitbag of any driver who needs to excel in awkward conditions.

One of the interesting things about his drive in Canada last year was the unusual (for JB) way in which he attacked the circuit (as well as his competition ) in that race. He showed that on occasion he can turn on that style but it seems that he can't necessarily keep it up as it isn't one of his most familiar tools. Yes that may be seen as a lack of flexibility or an inconsistency but it may also be a sign that his "feel and sensitivity" isn't actually his strongest point. It is obviously better or as good as many of his competition, but I think Alonso, Hamilton and probably Vettel are stronger in that department. The reason I say this is simply because we rarely see Jenson "make mistakes" - i.e. lock up, lose the car, or spin out, etc - in practise and qualifying that show that he has taken his car right up to and over the limit. The other top three seem happy to regularly take that extra little bit of risk in order to find the absolute limits of their cars.

Of course, I may be entirely wrong, but I can't help but feel that @Brogan's and The Pits have actually hit the nail on the somewhat less verbose head than mine.

 

[Slyboogy]

Uh? What did I say...

You said everything!

 

[Il_leone]

it can't be all down to luck if he keeps winning in mixed conditions like Senna use to pulverise everyone when it was wet..

Button is beating guys like Vettel, Alonso and Hamilton all who apparently excel in these conditions

 

[Hamberg]

But he's also been in positions in the majority of these cases where he has nothing to lose by making risky calls. How often has he been at the front when these decisions are required?

 

[Viscount]

Malaysia 2009, China 2010, Hungary 2011, Brazil 2012.

 

[Hamberg]

Alright, I'll let you have the first one, the second one just as he almost came a cropper at the end and the third one by default as being second I guess is at the front. Is this out of the ordinary compared to other drivers though? I thought the only comprehensively shit driver in the wet was Massa.

Is he the only driver in recent years to take advantage of the rain in every case rather than fuck up at least once which the others have all done?

 

[The Artist.....]

Malaysia 2009, China 2010, Hungary 2011, Brazil 2012.

What about Australia 2010? Similar situation, but in reverse!

 

[Hamberg]

What do you mean?
I personally wouldn't count that as a genius call, it was kind of forced wasn't it because his inters were going off and his lap times were off (the selfish bastard!)?

 

[The Artist.....]

Hamberg, I hear what you're saying, but it was the insight to see that slicks would work on the (still damp) track. Had he called in a lap earlier, he would probably have spun off the road! It isn't quite as obvious as it may seen - Almost worn out inters would still have probably been better than slicks, if the track wasn't ready for slicks!

 

[Hamberg]

Ahh gotcha! Still doesn't count in the Hamberg law of skill as he had nothing to lose

Seriously though I do hear what people are saying. Once is lucky, twice or thrice is a coincidence, anything more is the norm in my book and I think he's surpassed that comfortably.

 

[Viscount]

Well Korea 2010 and Malaysia this year were quite poor races for him. Only had a brief look, but I can't see anyone else who seems to consistently perform well in mixed condition races, though Alonso does seem to get close to the front in those types of races.

I thought the only comprehensively shit driver in the wet was Massa.

On a side note, after being a lap down by lap 21 in Brazil Massa had a pretty good comeback to make it on the podium.

 

[Slyboogy]

Massa is commonly known as a "shit driver in the wet", but from what I've seen, the only poor race I remember was Silverstone 2008 where he spun 5 times, and his team-mate Raikkonen spun 4 times, also worth noting, in that race, they were left out on worn inters when the majority of the field was on full wets, losing around 3-4s a lap.

A bit of topic I know, but I think considering his races from Silverstone onwards in the wet, he has been quite good.

Monaco 2008 (wrong strategy by Ferrari) Brazil 2008, Malaysia 2009 (was in a good positon until the race was stopped), China 2009 (running third until he retired), Australia 2010, Korea 2010, Brazil 2012.

Worth noting, the Ferrari was a shitbox in the wet back in 2007-2009.

 

[The Artist.....]

Slyboogy - it is true that the Ferrari was awful in the wet in 2007 and 2008, just like the McLaren appeared very good in the wet... Certainly, just as Massa's wet weather reputation was formed by his debacle in Silverstone (and to some extent Monza), Lewis Hamilton's excellent wet weather reputation was built on the back of Japan 2007 and Silverstone 2008, just as Vettel's reputation was built on Monza 2008.....I'm not convinced that Button is a true wet-weather warrior (a la Senna or Schumacher), but he excels in semi damp conditions - and I would wager that he is probably the the best driver in those conditions. Who the best driver in very wet conditions is? I couldn't answer that!

Massa was also dominant in 2008 in Brazil, where the wet-weather conditions almost cost Hamilton the title!

 

[sobriety]

Who the best driver in very wet conditions is?

Bernd Mayländer

 

[Brogan]

In case there was any doubt as to how Button and McLaren are going to approach next season.

McLaren driver Jenson Button is “really looking forward” to his role as the team’s lead driver in 2013, following Lewis Hamilton’s exit from the Woking-based outfit. Button will naturally become the leading figure at McLaren as the 2008 World Champion moves on to Mercedes, with Sergio Pérez joining from Sauber.

"I really enjoy being the lead driver and being the guy who can really help the team improve the car and sort of mould the car around me," Button told ITN.

"I'm really looking forward to 2013 because of that; I've got a couple of months to really mould the team and the car around me at the factory.

http://www.gpupdate.net/en/f1-news/288188/button-looking-forward-to-lead-role/

 

[The Artist.....]

Brogan

We're you ever in any doubt?

People have often pointed at the way Hamilton started at McLaren to show that a relatively inexperienced driver can take the challenge to an established name, but there are important differences!
1. That was Lewis Hamilton
2. Hamilton had also had a lot of testing for McLaren before the season- and had been testing through the year before as well, and could get into the factory and use the simulator... Perez won't have this advantage...